the pulp mill PSU 2 of Paso de los Torosin Tacuarembó, received the approval of its Operation Environmental Management Plan (PGAO) by the Ministry of Environmentthe last step he had left to start trading.
The instance was included in the audit of the portfolio on all procedures, systems and technologies required to comply with the environmental permit, which the company successfully passed.
Thus, more than three and a half years after the investment decision -in July 2019-, UPM 2 only the final authorization remains of operation for the commissioning of the plant, which UPM will announce once the permit is received.
Jussi Pesonen, CEO and President of UPM stated in this regard: “The commissioning of UPM Paso de los Toros completes our investment in transformative growth in Uruguay. Over the years, UPM has created a competitive industrial platform, with a secure and sustainable supply of wood and efficient logistics in Uruguay.”
According to Pesonen, with the commissioning of the plant, with a capacity of annual production of 2.1 million tons of eucalyptus pulpa 50% increase in UPM’s current pulp production capacity.
“This investment creates a change in the scale of our pulp business and future earnings for UPM. It also has a significant impact on the Uruguayan economy”, asserted the CEO of the company.
With UPM 2, pulp exports could reach 2 billion dollars
According to its latest study, Índice Líder, the Center for the Study of Economic and Social Reality (Ceres) reported that in March the forestry sector registered an increase in wood export requests, which shot up 37.3% year-on-year in the first two months of the year. year, according to data from the National Customs Directorate.
There is great expectation in Uruguay regarding exports this year, due to the boost that the start-up of the new UPM plant can cause.
Uruguay XXI indicated in its annual report of international trade that is expected to export a 50% more cellulose in the run of 2023until reaching a figure close to 2,066 million dollars. After the start of production of the UPM 2 plant, the biopolymer would exceed the placements of bovine meatwhich would fall a 7% compared to 2022, up to a projected total of 2,352 million dollars.
The European Union was last year the main destination of the product with a participation of 54% over the total, while China followed it up with one of 25%.
Source: Ambito
